


The Clock

by Warped_Alignment



Series: Requested Fanfics [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Peter Pettigrew is Not a Marauder, Pranks and Practical Jokes, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-15 06:46:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29059989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Warped_Alignment/pseuds/Warped_Alignment
Summary: She doesn't know it, but the time is ticking down.(Rating is just for language)
Relationships: Harry Potter & Ginny Weasley, Sirius Black & Remus Lupin & Peter Pettigrew & James Potter
Series: Requested Fanfics [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2203311
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	The Clock

**Author's Note:**

  * For [LucyAragorn](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LucyAragorn/gifts).



She races down the path, her watch telling her she was already late. The time ticking away, she estimated it'd be a few minutes before she got caught, if she could only get there in time. She rushed down the staircase, skipping a few too many as the portraits zoomed past. She was just about to step onto the end of the stairs, when they started to change. Her leg was still middair, and she found herself teetering on the edge of a very steep drop. The movement of the stairs made her want to hold on, but it was too late. The last jolt had pushed her over the edge, and now she was falling..

**_The clock stops._**

**_It rewinds._ **

**_Resets._ **

**_12 hours._ **

"Is she ok? Should we get Madame Pomfrey?" 

_Was that..?_

"Harry?" She asked, opening her eyes. It was him alright, except, something seemed different about him somehow. She reached a hand out to him, and he helped her up. 

"Are you ok?" Harry asked, and she nodded, 

"I think so. Those stairs did a real number on me, mind you. I almost didn't recognise you."

He frowned, "Why would you recognise me?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

His confusion seemed to grow, and she looked for help with Hermione and Ron, but instead three boys stood behind him. One of them was very good looking, with raven-black hair, a regal way of holding himself, and a stupid grin on his face. The boy he was grinning at, however, was rather dishevelled. His robes were torn, his mess of auburn curls almost in his eyes, and a large scar across his face. The last boy was rather fat, with blonde hair. His robes were clean, like the royal one, but they were a little too small. She looked back at Harry,

_His eyes!_

"James?" it was a leap of faith, but his eyes widened,

"How on earth would you know that?" She grinned,

"That means..that you-" she pointed to the regal-looking boy, "Are Sirius Black." He nodded, sharing the expression with the others, "You-" she pointed to the scarred boy, "Are Remus Lupin." he nodded too, looking to Sirius for help, "And you-" she glared at the last boy, "Are Peter Pettigrew."

"How come you know our names?" asked Har-James. 

"You're famous." she said, quite simply, taking a look at Sirius before adding, "Or infamous, depending on who you ask."

Sirius grinned, "I'm a criminal? What'd I do?"

She smiled sadly at him, "Nothing."

"So, aside from making stuff up about us, how did you know our names?" her ears burned at the idea of a lie, 

"You're wrong. I made nothing up."

"Okay then," said James, with a slight note of sarcasm to his tone, "So what else do you know about us?"

She looked at Remus, not wanting to spill his secret in front of everyone,

"Is there anywhere..more private, where we could talk?" 

"I don't know anywhere," said James, growing impatient, 

"What about your map? Can't you use that?"

"How did you know about our map?"

She rolled her eyes, "Of course I knew about your map. I also know..other things."

"Maybe we should listen to her. She _is_ wearing Gryffindor clothes. House solidarity?" Sirius suggested. Ginny nodded at his suggestion, 

"Yeah. My whole family are Gryffindors." She was pleased to have something to brag about, 

James sighed, " _Fine._ But Sirius, there _is_ a war going on. Don't believe her."

"But we're not telling her these things! She already knows them! And what'll happen if we don't listen? She could sell our secrets to half of Slytherin!"

"I would never!" she shouted, and Sirius raised his hands, 

"Sorry! I was just saying..."

"He's right." Remus responded, and James nodded. The five of them all walked swiftly to a passageway behind a painting. It was dark, and damp, but quiet enough, and too secret to think someone would burst in on them. 

"..So?" James asked, 

"I-My name is Ginny. Ginny Weasley."

"Weasley? As in Arthur?" asked Remus. 

"Yeah. He's my dad."

"No," said Sirius, "He only had boys, and none of them are old enough to be you."

"I know that." she said indignantly, "I've not been born yet." 

"That's ridiculous." James said.

Remus seemed to mull the idea over, "Ridiculous, yes. Impossible? I don't think so."

"You don't really believe her, do you Moony?" He bit his lip,

"I don't know, Prongs, all I'm saying, is it's possible."

"It is! It must be!" she pleaded, "I know a lot about you, things you haven't told anyone yet."

"R-Really?" Remus' lip was bleeding now, and he seemed to grow in concern, "What do you know?"

"You're Animagi." she told them, "Well, most of you, anyway." she added, smiling at Remus, "Some of you didn't need to be."

"What do you mean by that?" Sirius demanded, hand on his wand. 

"I mean, I know most things about you."

"But do you..know..about me?" Remus asked, and she nodded, 

"What do you know?" James asked, 

"I know that Remus is a werewolf." She told them.

Remus flushed red, struggling over what to say. Sirius drew his wand, and James glared at her.

"Don't worry! I'm not going to tell anyone!" she said. Remus nodded, 

"I-thank you." Sirius' wand went down, but not away. Remus turned to the others, "She must be telling the truth. There's no way anyone here knows."

The wand went away now, and James' face had softened. She had earned their trust. 

"So what else do you know?"

_**11 Hours.** _

"Sounds like your world's right messed up." James told her, still grinning from the point about his son being a seeker, "Mind you, if I marry Evans, I won't complain about dying."

She grinned at him, "Fuck's sake, James. Can't you be a bit more..shocked?"

"There's a war going on, Gin. I'm just glad I contributed to stopping it." he looked sad for a millisecond, before grinning again, "I'm really glad."

"Promise?"

"Yeah. Anyways, how do I end up dead?"

"Er-" she looked at Peter, who was eating an apple, and to Sirius, who was partly paying attention, "Someone betrayed you."

"Who?" Sirius piped up, "Who would do such a thing?" he thought for a moment, then, "Merlin's beard! It wasn't me, was it?"

"No. But you were blamed for it."

"Why?" Remus asked, putting an arm around Sirius' shoulder protectively, "Who'd want Sirius in Azkaban"

He scoffed, "Any number of my family members, I'd guess. But yeah, who's fault was it?"

"Peter."

"Me?" A wide-eyed Peter was looking at the other three with concern and apology in his eyes, " _I_ put Sirius in Azkaban?"

"For 12 years, yes." 

"Why? How could you, Pete?"

After a moment, he slowly said, "I wouldn't."

"What was that?" Sirius demanded.

"W-What was what?"

"You hesitated. Why did you hesitate?"

"I..I just, I feel like..sometimes, you guys leave me out."

"What?" James hissed, "You mean, you..you've considered it?"

"N-No..I mean, yes. But I wouldn't kill you."

"But you would betray us?"

"I-I" tears were rolling down his cheeks, "Maybe." he gasped out, and James' wand was out quicker than ever, 

"You'd kill Lily? You'd send Sirius to prison? You'd leave Remus, all alone? Just because you feel left out?" James' own eyes had tears in them, "Huh? Would you?"

"No. No!"

" _Rictumsempra_ " Peter was convulsing on the floor, laughing uncontrollably, face contorted in pain now,

"But you've just.. _considered_ it, right?"

"Yes!" he gasped out, and James' wand lowered. 

"That's just as bad."

"James, please! I just, you can't leave me out of things, that's all!"

"It may not have occurred to you, Peter, but we _don't_ leave you out of things! We include you in everything!"

"You whisper about things!"

"It's _called_ a conversation, one which you could join at any point, Pete! It doesn't mean you _murder_ us, you fucking psychopath!"

"I-"

_**10 hours** _

"..So are you going back?"

"I don't know how I got here."

"If you're stuck here, then you could help us with something." Sirius suggested, a mischeivous smile on his face. 

"What sort of something?" 

_**9 hours** _

"Merlin's beard!"

"Shit!"

"Run!"

Remus' response was, perhaps, the cleverer suggestion, as the four of them pounded their feet against the stone floors, racing to get away from the very angry caretaker, and the even angrier chickens following him, still wearing their Slytherin ties. Sirius started giggling, but Remus pushed him forwards, propelling him into action. The four of them ducked under a tapestry, and hid there until they heard the gentle padding of several tiny feet running away from them. 

Once they had left, Remus' hand was removed from Sirius' mouth, and he started to giggle, 

"Did you see that one with the black hair? That was Snivellus, for sure." James laughed, 

"Their tiny feet were hilarious!"

"And the way Filch led them all," Ginny added. The four of them were in fits of laughter before long, and once they'd regained their breath, Sirius clucked like a chicken, sending them over the edge once more.

Once they'd stopped, Remus seeemed slightly concerned, "Do you think they'll be able to blame it on us?"

"Nah, they'll be too busy trying to make a counter spell," Sirius said.

"So what else do you fancy doing?" James asked, turning to Ginny this time. She grinned, knowing exactly what to do.

_**8 hours** _

"No. Please. I hate it!"

"But Ginny said!" he smiled, "Don't be a spoilsport, Moony."

"Please, Pads! I don't even have a broom!"

Sirius drew one from out of thin air, and handed it to Remus, grinning, "You do now!"

A loud sigh was heard, before, "Fine. But I won't like it."

"Don't worry. There's only four players, so we'll just do it like this: Remus, you and James can be keepers. Ginny, you and me are chasers. First one to get the quaffle in wins. Got it?"

"I don't know how to play," he supplied, the last valid reason he could think of,

"Bugger off, Rem, we all know you commentated last year. You know full well how to play."

"I didn't know he commentated," Ginny told him,

"Yeah, I wouldn't imagine they'd tell anyone," he chuckled, "Remus got kicked off for swearing. A lot."

"I couldn't help it," Remus grumbled, "I got into the game."

"Sure you did moons, and if it were up to me, you'd still be commentator. You're great at making it more..interesting." 

James giggled, "That's one way to put it."

Ginny grinned, "Come on then, we haven't got all day!"

_**7 hours** _

An hour later, and the three of them were exhausted, slick with sweat, and sipping cool water in the shade, after a rather successful game (or unsuccessful, if you were Remus)

"Aww, are you jealous, Rem?" she said, ruffling his hair. 

"No. I just..needed more practise."

"More practise? You needed to learn not to duck every time the quaffle came close!" James said. 

Sirius snorted, "Don't be too harsh on moony, he can't help it."

"You know what I can help?"

"What?"

"Murdering annoying people."

"Aah, but I'm not a person, am I?" he asked, with a grin, before turning into a dog, running into the pitch with a bark. James, Ginny and Remus all watched as he ran into the bleachers, rematerialisng a few moments later, with a Slytherin tie in his mouth. He dropped it in front of Remus, before changing back.

"You want some food?"

**_5 hours_ **

The four of them went to the library after they'd eaten. Remus looked positively in his element, whilst Sirius looked just as uncomfortable as Remus did on a broom. James was also a little shifty, but after seeing a familiar face, he was more than happy to be there. 

"Did you see Evans? She likes me," he said with a grin, 

"No she doesn't, you prat! We've had this conversation all year." Sirius told him, 

"Yeah, except Ginny said we're going to marry, so.."

"That's only if you stop acting like an idiot," Remus snapped, and he shut up. 

"So what were you doing before you came here?"

"I was..walking-yes! I was late-and then I..I walked on the stairs..and they changed..and I fell!" 

"So you could be dreaming." Remus supplied, 

"Does this _look_ like a dream?" Sirius asked.

"I don't know, no?" she guessed. 

"Of course it's not a dream, idiot. I know things she doesn't know, right?" James asked. 

"My dad's name is Fleamont."

"I knew that." she told him, and he frowned, examining his hands as if they were about to disappear, 

"How about the time we put polyjuice potion in the punch last April fools?" he asked, "Did you know about that?"

"No," she said slowly, "What happened?"

"We brewed a ton of it," Sirius said, "And we put Dumbledore's hair in it."

"It was difficult to get a hold of, we had to do some very strange things to get it." Remus added, 

"But when we did.." James started. Sirius giggled, "..It was worth it." 

"The hall was full of Dumbledores, and then he got into the crowd, and no-one could find him. It was amazing."

Ginny laughed, "Did you get into trouble?" Remus shook his head, 

"We were the top suspects, but Dumbledore said it was 'harmless fun' and no-one should be pursued."

"I gained a lot of respect for the man, that day." Sirius asserted. 

"There had just been an attack, and everyone forgot for a moment," James told her, "They had fun. It's good to be a kid sometimes."

Ginny thought about the diary, the fight with Voldemort, and how she wished she had more of a childhood. 

"It's good to be a kid sometimes" she agreed. 

**_4 hours_ **

An hour later, and they had made a total of no progress, other than James making (literal) doe eyes at Lily, Sirius eating a page of a book (Ginny wasn't sure how he managed it, but was certain it was him), the Librarian had threatened to kick them out 5 times already, and Remus and Ginny being the only two who had made any headway, and even then, there was nothing. It was so frustrating, Ginny felt sure the next book would kill her. 

**_3 hours_ **

The next book did not kill her, neither did the next, or the next. But after 7 more large books, she grew tired, and must've fallen asleep at some point. She woke up with her head in a book about time travelling whilst cooking, Sirius' dog form lying on her feet, with James and Remus nowhere to be seen. 

After a while, they came back, with four hot chocolates. The librarian was too busy telling someone else off to notice, and the two of them slipped the cups onto the table. She brushed back her hair, and they went back to their work.

**_2 hours_ **

After four hours in the library, with several mishaps, a few spillages, and everyone falling asleep at one point, they finally got kicked out. Sirius had gotten so frustrated, he had set a book on fire (in his defence, he was supposed to be casting a candle lighting spell, but it went..not to plan) and so they were once again in the hallways.

Frustrated, annoyed, and irritable, the four of them headed back to the dorm room. Ginny recognised it as the same bright room that Harry had, and she had no doubts that this was on purpose. She plopped onto the empty bed, lying flat on her back.

"Do you think anything will change, when you go back?" Sirius asked.

"I don't even know if I _will_ go back," she said, sighing sadly. If she didn't, she'd miss Harry. She'd miss Harry, and Ron, and George, Charlie, and Hermione, Luna, Neville, Bill, and even Percy. She'd miss them all, and she didn't want to miss them. She wanted her home. She felt a hot tear streak her face, and wiped it away, quickly.

"We'll find something." she said firmly, "we have to."

Sirius grinned, "Let's do something else first."

**_1 hour_ **

'Something' came in the form of chasing some very angry Slytherin chickens through the halls, trying to catch a particularly greasy looking black-feathered chicken, who James was certain was Snape. (although nothing could be confirmed, Ginny agreed, There was something about his abnormally large nose)

"He's coming your way Moons!" Sirius shouted, 

"Shut up, Pads. I see him!" 

"Where's he going?" Ginny asked. 

"To the dungeons!" James replied.

"Get him, Prongs!" Sirius shouted, as he was pecked by a particularly angry blonde one. James bounced after him, Ginny on his heels, as Sirius and Remus attempted to follow, getting pecked by angry Slytherins as they raced after them. 

_**30 minutes** _

"Where's he going now?"

"The potions classroom!" James gasped. He lunged through the door, glad to see the damp room was empty, except for a chicken which was now madly clucking. James picked him up, giggling for all he was worth, 

"Got him!" The chicken squawked, flapping its wings, and James screamed, dropping him. He quickly scurried out of the room, and Sirius led the way towards him.

**_20 minutes_ **

"He bit me!"

"Can you blame him, pads? You're being a little agressive." James stated

"Why are we even doing this again?" Remus asked, shaking his head, 

"Moony, watch out!"

The chicken hit Remus in the middle of his face.

**_10 minutes_ **

After a little bit of first aid, they were back on the trail of the hilariously squawking Snape-chicken, giggling like crazy as they zoomed through the hallways, past classrooms with very annoyed looking teachers, and swerving past the teachers who did come out, fixated on the chicken 

**_7 minutes_ **

"He's going towards the balcony! Don't let him fall off!"

"He can fly, you dolt!"

"Well, then, don't let him fly off!"

**_6 minutes_ **

"Where's he going now?"

"The stairs!"

**_5 minutes_ **

"Aagh! He pooed on me!"

Sirius giggled madly, "He's gonna be so embarrassed about that once the spell wears off."

James joined in with the laughing, but had a new determination on his face, "I'm going to get him!"

_**3 minutes** _

"Quick! He's dropping feathers! What if the spell wears off?"

"Then we'll catch a fully grown Snape!"

_**2 minutes** _

"He's got legs!" Ginny looked down to see tiny orange legs appear at the base of the chicken. Sirius grinned. 

**_60 seconds_ **

"The stairs are changing!"

"Get back!"

**_50 seconds_ **

"He's going to fall off!"

**_40 seconds_ **

"Stay back, Gin!"

_**30 seconds** _

"Ginny!"

**_20 seconds_ **

"Is she down there?"

**_10 seconds_ **

****

The ground was coming closer and closer, she felt the wind rushing in her face, and heard the chicken flap its wings ahead of her. 

_**5 seconds** _

She saw the other stairs zoom past her, making her close her eyes

**_2 seconds_ **

She opened her eyes again to see the ground come so close. She squeezed them shut. 

**_1 second_ **

A large bang was heard, and darkness took over.

**_The clock stops._ **

**_Fast forwards._ **

**_Continues._ **

"Ginny? Are you ok?"

"Ginny?" Someone was shaking her. Her head hurt. Her mouth was dry. _Was that James?_

"James?" she murmured, and the boy shook her. He was a little blurry. He came into focus. _His eyes!_

"Harry?" He grinned. _God, he looks like James._

"You ok?"

"Yeah. I think I'm fine."

"Good, because we've got to pack our bags."

"Really? It's Christmas, and my parents can't have us this year." _Did she forget something?_

"Yeah, so we're going to my parent's house?"

"Your parents?"

"Yeah. How hard did you hit your head?"

"Not hard. Don't worry." she replied, with a grin, "Everything's fine."

And it was. 


End file.
